Hi Kevin,

Thirty years for an electric hot water tank puts it well beyond its
natural life. Average life expectancy is ten to twelve years and in
areas with exceptionally hard water, five to seven is more the norm.
I would be inclined to replace it now before it begins to leak.

Cheers,
Paul

On 29 Jan 2007 10:28:29 -0800, "Kevin G."
wrote:

My 30-year-old 80-gallon electric water heater has begun to not work
very well. When taking a shower, after about five (5) minutes, the
water begins to lose its heat, and I have to turn the cold water
almost completely off in order for the water to remain warm.

The thermostat on my water heater is set to 120 degrees Fahrenheit. I
have troubleshooted online and I've read where the dip tube could be
cracked or have some sort of other problem. I just recently drained
out my water heater to remove sediment that was built up, thinking
that this might fix the problem, but the same problem still exists. I
don't think that the previous home owner ever did this.

Is it worth the money to call a repair person to investigate the
problem, or should I shell out the bucks for a new one?

Thanks for any advice,
Kevin